Even after a performance of 25 carries for 174 yards and a touchdown in Iowa’s 15-6 victory over Wisconsin on Saturday, Iowa running back Leshon Williams isn’t expecting to hear all positive praise from his coaching staff.

In fact, on perhaps his best play of the day, an 82-yard touchdown run, the third-year back said the play was flawed from the start. 

“It was crazy, but I wasn’t on my track, [so] my coaches are going to be very mad at me when we watch it on film,” Williams said of the TD run in his postgame press conference. “I made it a lot harder than it needed to be.” 

After taking a handoff on third-and-2 from quarterback Deacon Hill, Williams turned on the jets, dashing past his blockers and hitting a stutter step to evade a would-be Badger tackler. He then hit a stiff arm and raced down the right sideline. By the time he reached the end zone, Williams had traveled 82 yards,  the longest play for the Hawkeyes this season and the only offensive touchdown of the day. 

While the feat may have looked impressive to any fan, Williams viewed the play with a more critical eye. Even though he said he “blacked out” and had no memory of the stiff arm, he remembered his stutter step as unnecessary, detailing how he needed to have more patience and trust in his coaches. 

According to Williams, Iowa offensive coordinator Brian Ferentz had a talk with the Hawkeye RB group following Iowa’s 20-13 win over Purdue last week. In that session, the Chicago native said Ferentz explained how the ground game had “left a lot of yards out there” against the Boilermakers because of a speed discrepancy between the backs and the offensive line. 

Williams, a product of Richards High School, said that oftentimes, he and his fellow running backs move too fast and reach the line before they can make any cuts. Heading into the contest against the Badgers, Williams said the goal was to be more patient and wait for the offensive line to create holes. 

“Every week they’re getting better,” Williams said of his O-line, which went up against the 27th-ranked rushing defense in the FBS.  “As you can see, they were working hard … They lived up to the challenge, and I felt like they imposed their will.” 

Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz said Williams “didn’t look overly impressive, quite frankly,” in the third quarter against Michigan State in Week 5 but credited the 22-year-old for “getting back on his feet” and improving in the final 15 minutes of the contest. On the Hawkeyes penultimate drive against the Spartans, Williams amassed 19 of his 36 total rushing yards, pushing Iowa into field goal range to seal the victory. 

As for his performance today, Ferentz didn’t have to explain much. 

“He played outstanding today,” he said of Iowa’s oldest running back. 

Just like his coaches, Williams isn’t hesitant to point out areas he can improve in. In his 53-yard run against Western Michigan in September, the running back was tackled near the goal line. Against the Badgers, Williams made sure such a shortcoming wouldn’t happen again. 

“Oh yeah, that was embarrassing,” Wiliams said of the play against the Broncos. “I’ve been working on picking my knees up and keeping my legs moving.”

Saturday was the second straight game in which the Hawkeyes posted at least 150 yards on the ground. Williams believes the RB room is going to keep getting better. Heading to Camp Randall Stadium projected to lose by 10 points, the  Hawkeyes were determined to make a statement to the Badgers and the rest of the Big Ten. 

“There was a chip on our shoulder,” Williams said. “So we just wanted to go out there and make sure that we’re physical, show that we’re not the underdog.”